That was the year it was: 2011

So this will be my last post for 2011 - Because the festive season is here and there are people who I should spend some time with. And besides, this past week has been rather barren with things to say.
So to wrap this year up, some quick thoughts about the games I played this year. Sure not all of them were released this year but still:

Bioshock
Intimidating at first but this won me over with it's compelling plot, great use of ideas and it's well-realised setting and imagination behind it. The praise lauded on it may have left me reluctant to play it but, much to my surprise, it turned out great.

Dragon Age 2
Why didn't Bioware keep the pattern established with Origins and Awakening and give this game a subtitle? This game had some good ideas true but they were bogged down with dull environments, stupid combat and no proper goal. Still it would be interesting to see what Bioware will do now with Dragon Age 3....

Green Day Rock Band
Dookie was a welcome addition to My Rock Band Library - not sure about the other two albums though.....

Iron Brigade
I became aware of this game through a positive review on Good Game. I've enjoyed playing Mechwarrior 2 in the past so the idea of stomping around in a huge mech had some appeal. Can't say I'm a big fan of Tower Defense games but this was good fun.

Lego Rock Band
Something of a surprise: I originally got for the games for the songs but somehow, it won me over. Juvenile yes but with some a charm of it's own.

Oblivion
Another long time coming but I enjoyed this game purely for wandering around and checking the well-realised world out. But as this game is an action RPG, one would think I'd missed the point...

Portal
Somehow the memes based around this game made actually playing the damn thing redundant. Oh well...

Red Dead Redemption
I've heard some less than praising comments for this game. Can't imagine why....

Rock band 3
Well what can i say that hasn't been said before? Some changes were nice others weren't. Music Library good, stupid difficulty not.

And that's the end of Game Tumour for 2011. Thank you for reading and I'll see you on the other side of 2012
So what will the new year bring? That's a very good question...

Cursed Gate

Baldur's Gate 2 and I have something of a history. I love it, regard it as one of the finest games ever made Bioware's finest moment and the best representation of Dungeons and Dragons made in the history of gaming. It however doesn't seem to appreciate me as the player.

Now I've spoken about games that seem to resent me as the player but this is a different case. It would seem that everytime I want to play this game something happens that gets in the way. Could be it some kind of curse? I'm not so sure but no other game I've played has had so much bad luck attached to it.

Firstly, I purchased BG2 as part of the Baldurs Gate collection - the one that had both games and the two expansions (Tales of Sword Coast and Throne of Bhaal). At the time I was really excited to play these as I'd heard a lot about them and wanted to see an update to the D&D system I was familiar with through Pool of Radiance. But I foolishly purchased it online - thus when I finally got the collection itself, it turned out the main games were on DVD. A drive I sorely lacked.

Secondly, I finally got my claws on a DVD drive and burned up many, many hours in both Baldurs Gate and Baldur's Gate 2. Alas, the extensive use of the latter led to the disc getting damaged: A crack appeared along the side of the disc and only got bigger. So, however reluctantly, I had to throw it into the rubbish bin.

Thirdly there was that moment in BG1 where the game crashed at a particular moment but, as game's crashing is nothing new, there isn't much there to dwell upon...

And finally, I did eventually get a replacement disc for Baldur's Gate 2. Again it was a DVD but this time it didn't work: The entire game may be on a DVD but it still keeps demanding another CD-Rom!

So what now? I suppose I could get another disc of BG2 (making it my third) but considering the string of misfortune I've had, one would wonder why I'd bother...

Game of the Year

Around this time of the year most gamers are looking back over the past twelve months and selecting their pick for Game of the Year. Not me though: As this blog is discovering games in my own time, the question is more: What games from this year did I actually play?

Well I liked Skyrim.
And Iron Brigade was pretty cool too.

Well that was easy.

Tainted Love

Whew, writing that serial about my favorite game music took a lot outta me. But no matter, I still have things to say and as long as there is a creative bone in my body, the typing shall resume.

On the weekend, I decided to give Dragon Age 2 another go - Not sure why though. Yes all the talk about it being more a side-story than a legitimate sequel has indeed some weight behind it, but I don't know: Maybe it's the hope of finding a diamond in the rough. Or maybe there's some XBLA achievements worth scooping up. Maybe....

But no matter, I've progressed into Act 2 and I've found some enjoyment - but I feel dirty for saying so because, to say you enjoy Dragon Age 2 is all very well but one can't ignore the flaws: namely the repetitive environments, the dull combat system and a lack of definable goal. But then again, I've seen similar arguments and passionate defending for both the games in the Final Fantasy series and Skies of Arcadia so I'm not really that bothered.

But I have to admit that this game has made something of an impression on me because I played through the The Long Road companion quest - and came away somewhat disappointed.
Far be it from me to give away spoilers but what this quest entails is that Aveline wants to get the attention of Donnic, a soldier she fancies and enlists the help of Hawke to allow it to happen. Throughout the quest, Hawke is allowed to act flirtatious towards Aveline but, ultimately, for little good.

Now a lot has been said that the cast of DA2 has been rather dull but I must admit I've had something of a liking for Aveline. There's something compelling about her, with her being forced into the role of the knight by her father, her dealing with the loss of her husband Wesley and her assistance to Hawke in being Captain of the Guards. And in spite of her no-nonsense approach, there is still some vulnerabilities about Aveline with her duties as captain and the awkwardness with Donnic. The latter deserves particular attention: She tries to get his attention but, frustratingly, remains oblivious towards any advances Hawke can make. But in the end this is, insofar, the most vulnerable Aveline has come across.
So it begs the question: Why couldn't I romance her? Merrill bores me, Isabella has.... been around and the gay romance doesn't really interest me. Aveline however seems a far more compelling option: In that she is a widower, awkward in romance and actually seems alone. With The Long Road quest, I did choose the flirtatious options as I was really interested in seeing this play out and whether or not Aveline would open her eyes.
But no, whatever romantic potential is reduced to her acting in an oblivious manner (maybe the widower romance was done with Jahiera in Baldur's Gate 2?). And you know what? I feel hurt by this: My Hawke is breaking his balls to help her in the romance stakes and she doesn't seem to care. And all he gets is what? A quick peck on the check?! Well screw you bitch! Have fun struggling to get Donnic's attention with the ghost of Wesley hanging over you! Hope you enjoy being a captain because that's all you're ever going to do! And hope you appreciate the company of thoughts of what could've been!!!!

Actually now that I think about it, when it comes to (hetero) romances, male Hawke gets a raw deal whilst female Hawke can hit on Fenris and Sebastian.
Hmmm, maybe next time I'll take a female Hawke....

Curse of the Burnout 3

I've spoken a lot about the brutal, unforgiving nature of the AI in Burnout 3 before. No other game has such a nasty AI and no other game has left me screaming insults at the TV screen.
So today, I present, a list of things I have uttered upon crashing in Burnout 3:

"BULLSHIT!" (most frequented)
"Where did that come from?!"
".......................................HOW?!?!?"
"Are you shitting me?!?!"
"Come on come on! You can make the Afte.....OH COME ON!!!"
"HELLLOOOO?! Steering?!?!? Where are YOOUUUUUUU?!?!?!!?"
"Is this for me getting a Perfect on that last lap?!?"
"These cars can't be made of metal! They must be made of cheap Taiwanese plastics!!!"
"That was miles away!!!!!!"
"Where's the Time reverse mechanic from Sands of Time when you need it?!?"
"You know sometimes I wonder why I bother with Aftertouch"
"Well there goes the first place"
"Well looks like I won't be catching him now"
"Somehow I bet the physics programmer is jacking off to this..."
"Well excuse me for trying to keep up!!!!"
"Well excuse me for playing!!!!"
"What the hell is a rage quit?!"

31 Songs (addendum)

And so the month that was the Planet of Sound series, comes to an end. And I can tell you: Choosing the thirty one songs that made up the serial was not an easy task - let alone writing a paragraph each to go with them! There were so many other great video game tunes I wanted to include but to cut the selection down to thirty one was a tough call - as such many other tunes I liked had to be discarded.
But having said, there's no reason why the one's that didn't make the cut shouldn't get their moment in the sun. So, to wrap this serial up, I present some of the tunes that didn't make the list. Some of them were victims of my self-imposed restrictions and others had to be cut out for slack of room.
So, for the final part of the serial, may I present the rank outsiders:

Xenon 2: Megablast

For the unfamiliar, Xenon 2: Megablast was a game that, for it's day, was a big hit on the Amiga. It was put together by the legendary Bitmap Brothers who, at the time, pushing the idea of software developers into the public eye and incorporating well-known musicians into their works. Of course, this sounds old hat now but it was unique at the time (late eighties). And thus the theme for Xenon 2 was an accurate recreation of the song Megablast done by Bomb the Bass - which is in itself a remix of the theme to Assault on Precinct 13.
Of course, it seems quite unfair to have commercially available tracks in my list so thus it didn't make the cut. But damn, what a rockin' theme this - somehow perfect for gunning down enemies by the hundreds.


Shadow of the Beast - Title theme

Another lost treasure from the Commodore Amiga. I must admit I never played this game (thus automatically preventing it from making the cut) and it's only in recent years, through the magic of youtube, that I came across this theme. But what a stunning theme it is: It's a freaky theme that sounds genuinely scary with it's odd percussion and shrilling flutes. It's truly the sound of an evil forest wherein beasts lie and evil acts are being committed.
And it would seem that if you go to down the woods today you're in for a BIG surprise.....


Truxton - Far Away

Another theme I remember fondly from my childhood. It's a rocking theme and somehow fitting for flying through space and gunning down anything dumb enough to stand in your way.
I know I've been critical of the musical capabilities of the Megadrive before but you know what? I think this is actually much better then it's original arcade counterpart. Somehow, the original comes across as being a bit stiff whilst this seems much more energetic.
So why didn't this make the cut then? That's a very good question. Either space was limited or I didn't think of it at the time. Oh well, it get's it's own place here then!


ActRaiser - Filmore

This should've made the cut but alas, space was limited. Nevertheless, here it is in all it's sword-swinging, demon-smiting glory.
It's a rockin' theme driven entirely by the bass line. Indeed the latter deserves particular theme as it really grabs the attention of the listener and really delivers a sound that one wouldn't think possible on the SNES. The bass makes the tune rumble and drives it forward in a manner that would've made Cliff Burton proud.
Other than that, this is a grandiose theme perfectly fitting for a god. And for smiting demons with a huge sword.


Oh No More Lemmings - Ingame 4

This too should've made the cut: Oh No More Lemmings is loaded to the gills with maddeningly catchy tunes (again all sounding much better on the Amiga than anywhere else) so it was difficult to choose one. That and it was hard to find on youtube. But no matter: It's for the reason of making these tunes heard that this addendum was created.
As mentioned above, the music in Oh No More Lemmings have to be amazingly catchy. It sounds goofy but even now I see such a simple catchy melody - not unlike a children's nursery rhyme - and a load of colours laid on top of it. It may sound simple but really there is a lot of complexity being put to work. Indeed, I think that years later I can still recall these tunes and catch myself unwittingly humming them.
Thus it is hard for me to choose one because they're all so damn memorable. But I think this is the I like the best. Not sure why but I fear that if I try to explain it, it may lose significance. So lets move on shall we?


Daytona USA

Sure nowadays we may laugh at the bad Engrish and the unrelenting refrain of "Daytooooooonnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!" but I think that's the key to the theme's success. The refrain commands attention - which is exactly what an arcade game must do in order to reap the change from any passerby's. As a selling point it works a treat as people can remember the theme years later. It also doesn't that the theme is a fantastically energetic and rockin' theme - perfect for a racing game.
Again, I'm not sure why this made the cut. Maybe the fact that the refrain is the only part people remembering held it back. Maybe, again, I didn't think of it at the time - cut no matter. With this post, I now provide an excuse to shout out "Daytooooooonnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!"


Panzer Dragoon - Flight

Another tune from a game I never played. True I've played Zwei (however briefly) but the first Panzer Dragoon game eluded me. Thus, it didn't make the cut. Sure there were some tunes from games I've never played that did make the cut (ie Chrono Cross and Shining Force 3) but for me they work just as well outside the game - which is rarer than one would think.
Still, this addendum was written to give those that didn't make the cut some attention so, lets talk Flight:
As time marches on, the series that is Panzer Dragoon will keep descending into a legendary status. It had some great ideas and wonderful art direction but sadly, it wasn't played by enough people. Sure there have been attempts to remake it but Team Andromeda has since folded and scattered - thus ensuring that there will never be another quite like it. Sure Panzer Dragoon Saga may endure as gaming's Holy Grail with the passing of time, it;s looking increasingly clear that the Panzer Dragoon series will never reappear to satisfy the longing of those who want to play it (like me!).
Yet scraps of information on the series remain on youtube: not least this wonderful theme. I love the orchestral arrangement in this theme and it fits perfectly the mood of flying across deserts on the back of a majestic dragon. Not much else I can say bar I love this theme - even if I never have (and probably never will) played the game it's from.


And with that, this serial comes to a conclusion. I hope you enjoyed reading this and you've come away from it having discovered something new. Until next time, may the music last forever. Cheers!

Forty Thousand and Two

Last weekend I finally got my computer upgraded (thanks Stephen!) so I finally got the chance to play some games that have been on my shelf due to them being beyond the capabilities of my last computer. So the lucky first would be the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War series.

Now I've had a long standing interest in Warhammer (both FB and 40k) stretching back to my high school days so this, for me, is the closest thing to a 'real-life' representation (for lack of better choice of words): Finally after years of text and artwork, we have actual voices, buildings, and movement. Okay sure hearing all Eldar speak in monotone voices was a big surprise to say the least but, for a long-term fan, this was pretty good to see the universe actual brought to life - and, whilst not the first game to be based on the Warhammer universe, it was the first to actually treat it seriously.

Whilst this is not the first time I've played Dawn of War it is however the longest I've spent on it. The Space Marines are great (although the lack of Space Wolves is annoying), the Eldar are great (even if I find their monotone voices far too hilarious), Chaos is hilarious and the Imperial Guard aren't too bad either.
But as a RTS game, I will admit that Dawn of War is compelling: Having grown accustomed to the formula that gave rise to Warcraft, Starcraft and the Command and Conquer series, it's interesting to see things done differently. No resource gathering (which honestly was something I found quite tedious with the Blizzard/Westwood Studios trinity) but in it's place is claiming objectives. The leader attachment to squads is kinda handy and it is indeed welcome to see a focus on building actual armies as opposed to a small empire. Indeed, it is great to get the tedious elements of RTS get discarded in favor of actually building a force to go crack some heads. Of course this may not be first time such a thing has happened but it is a welcome change from someone who keeps surrendering to the siren call of Starcraft,

So yes, I like Dawn of War, as a fan of 40k and fan of RTS games. Now if you will excuse me, I must keep on crushing heretics in the Emperor's name...